KUALA LUMPUR (Sept 6): Malaysia Airlines has unveiled flights to Paris in March next year, marking the national carrier’s return to the French capital city after more than nine years.
The direct flight will start from March 22 next year, utilising Airbus A350 planes that fly the carrier’s passenger along key routes like London and Narita, Datuk Captain Izham Ismail, group managing director of Malaysia Aviation Group (MAG), said.
The flight marks the “long awaited” return of Malaysia Airlines to the European city, Izham said.
“The European market is highly competitive, but we see immense potential for this destination,” said Izham at a press conference at Malaysia’s travel fair, the Matta Fair.
It was reported that Malaysia Airlines stopped flights to Paris, and Amsterdam in Netherlands back in January 2016, as part of its phasing out strategy for its B777 fleet at the time.
Termination for the Paris flights at the time ended a route that Malaysia Airlines had served for 35 years since 1981.
The reintroduction will see daily flights to Paris from Kuala Lumpur beginning March 29.
The launch of the new route, which has been under evaluation even pre-pandemic, was announced at a time when Malaysia Airlines went under the spotlight in recent weeks amid flight delays and rerouting, which culminated in the carrier cancelling some flights and reducing flight frequencies.
The launch of the new route does not push aside the recent episodes, said Izham, referring to recent flight cancellations and rerouting affecting the airline.
MAG has a role to play in supporting the nation’s travel and tourism industry, he said, adding that “safety is of utmost importance”, while customer experience remains top priority.
“It is a difficult decision to give us time to make necessary corrective measures,” said Izham.